Wes Lematta, who started Columbia Helicopters in 1957 with a small helicopter and built the Aurora-based company into a world leader of commercial heavy-lift operations, died today. He was 82.

When he started Columbia Helicopters, Lematta sold helicopter rides at county fairs and from corner lots on weekends. Within six months after starting the company, Lematta rescued 17 sailors from a sinking dredge in Coos Bay.

The company, which Lematta ran with his brothers Ed, Bill and Jim, grossed $20,000 its first year. By the mid-1990s, it grossed $100 million.

Today, Columbia Helicopters employs more than 600 people worldwide. It is involved in logging, petroleum exploration, firefighting, and construction of cell phone towers and ski lift towers across the United States and in South America and the South Pacific.

The company's helicopters also performed in movies including "Jurassic Park: The Lost World" and on television, including The Learning Channel's "Monster Machines."

"There is no one I know who better embodied the spirit of a pioneer in helicopter aviation than Wes," said Mike Fahey, president of Columbia Helicopters.

"Wes had a vision that helicopters were capable of so much more than carrying passengers, so he created the heavy-lift helicopter industry through determination, skill and strength of character."

Lematta helped develop the helicopter logging industry. He perfected a method called direct visual operational control, recognizing that he was better able to complete a project if he could look down at a load instead of relying on radio contact with the ground.

His technology enables a pilot to lean out the cockpit window and "fly" a hook at the end of a 200-foot cable suspended from the helicopter's belly. It continues to be used throughout the heavy-lift helicopter industry.

Lematta grew up in Clark County, the son of second-generation Finns. He attended school there but never went beyond eighth grade.

Despite a lack of formal education, his vision and innate business sense helped him to build a successful company, co-workers said.

In 1969, Wes acquired the first of his tandem-rotor aircraft, which would become virtually synonymous with Columbia Helicopters. First purchased from Pan Am and New York Airways, the Boeing- and Kawasaki-built Vertol 107-IIs became the backbone of the company's fleet.

Eventually, Columbia Helicopters became the world's only commercial operator of the Vertol 107-II and Model 234 Chinook helicopters. These aircraft are now designated as Columbia 107-IIs and Columbia Model 234 Chinooks.

In June 2009, Lematta was honored by state lawmakers, who voted to rename the Aurora State Airport, the site of his company's headquarters, the Wes Lematta Field.

Among the awards he received were the Helicopter Association International's Honorary Lifetime Achievement award and Lawrence D. Bell Memorial award for leadership.

He and his wife, Nancy, were recognized for their philanthropic work, based on their contributions to Oregon State University, Legacy Meridian Park Hospital, Providence Hospital and Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

"This is a very sad day for his family, for his employees and for the entire helicopter industry," Fahey said. "We mourn his loss, and yet we also want to celebrate his life and his contributions to our industry and aviation as a whole."

Lematta died of complications from bladder cancer that he was diagnosed with 25 years ago, said Dan Sweet, a Columbia Helicopter spokesman.

He is survived by his wife, sons Jeff and Bart, and daughters Marci and Betsy.